The first time Louie bit me (my fault–I was messing with his head, which I learned that moment that he hates), he murmured, “I’m sorry.”

He’s said that three or four times, each when he did something he knew he shouldn’t.

If I knock something over, it’s likely he’ll call out, “Oops!”

The first time he watched our little cockatiel go scurrying away from us across the floor on some exploratory mission, he exclaimed, “C’mere!” He said the same thing the first time he encountered my neighbor’s dog. And when we call him, he comes. In the shower, he’ll call to the water, “C’mere!” as if he can bring it closer to him. When he’s decided he’s done with the shower, he says, “Goodbye Louie!” And then will start calling out for me, “Baby!” with my husband (he showers with Hubby, I blowdry him).

In some ways, it is eerie.

Other phrases he knows are “You’re so pretty!” (he says this to blonde women frequently), “Y’wanna go outside?” (he says this when he is in a new place), and “Good boy!”